alder lake park

Great camp ground with Alder Lake access. Facilities are clean and accessible to camp sites. It would have been a perfect camping trip but the group beside us did not understand what quiet time means which is from 10pm-6am. Went to the booth at the gate to have park staff talk to them (as I do not think it is safe to argue with 10+ drunk people @ 11PM) but no one was there. They should have staff patrolling the grounds right at 10PM to check that people are abiding by camp rules.

Alder lake is big compared to many of the others in the area. I love the lake for fun day trips. Great for picnics, family outings, fishing, and just being outside exploring. In the summer the eagles nest around the lake, so the are easy to spot. Kayaking around the lake is great too. You have a lot of ground to cover and some little islands here and there to get close to. The lake is on its way to Mt. Rainier, so it is always fun to couple it with some time at both. But do keep in mind, unless you are local to the area, you are going to have a bit of a drive. It's a beautiful drive though.

Stayed at Alder Lake Park on July 22-24, 2014. Very nice park, excellent swim area for the Grandkids! Park is neat and clean. Noisy at night with huge party next door with a generator running after 10 pm. Quiet hours were not in forced at all! Also, spent big money for 2 campsites as the site showed campsites as "1 or 2 tents" I could not find a 2 tent site and booked two sites, one for me and one for the grandkids....$150.00! When we got there we saw multi tents up in the "1 tent" sites. I asked the owners about that and they said I could have had 2 tents in a "1 tent" site it there was room for 2 tents.....would have been nice to know and saved my self some money!

We spent 4 days over the 4th of July holiday here with family. We had 2 sites that were side by side and had a nice grassy patch between them. We found the park to be quite enjoyable because it was quiet and clean. The staff drive around about every hour or so to empty the garbage cans and check the restrooms. We will be back to camp here again and enjoy seeing the deer again!

We love to picnic at Alder Lake. Good for families, couples or young adults--lots of them up here. Large grassy areas to spread out and enjoy a picnic on a hot summer afternoon. Haven't tried the fishing here yet, but seen plenty of large fish photos from this lake.

Nice small beach area to enjoy but little shade around for those that burn! No lifeguards available for the area but it was shallow enough for young kids. Typical lake area - not like the ocean!

Clean, lots of privacy, a lot of things to do right in the park (swimming, playground, kayaking, boating, walks, proximity to Mt. Rainier, friendly staff. Great visit.

I haven't spent time at the park, but the lake is beautiful. It is clean, cold with great 'small' cliffs to jump and amazing views of Rainier. If you are in the area then it is worth the trip -- even better if you have a boat!!

First night we stayed pulled in later evening to find out from our friends already at the park that the power would be turned off at 10 to 2. We were not notified when we checked in that the power would be off but was told about the fire ban. As, we unloaded and went to go enjoy our friends PROPANE (pressured controlled fire pit) a few park rangers decided that after having it going all day long and for a few days before it had to be turned off. We were told we would get a fine even though DNR was called by our party and it was okay plus it stated on DNR website it was okay to use. We were told it had to be off or else we would be getting a 300.00 fine. So not only did we have NO power for hours and no heat they were not going to refund us anything for the inconvenience. The next morning we found a state park ranger (green truck) to explain the rules of the ban and what was allowed which we had a controlled pressured propane fire pit. They left came back said it was okay after all.. Just such a pain camping is suppose to be relaxing and the first 12 hours of our trip was not. The access to the lake was nice and the grounds were clean and nice so overall the facility was nice just poor services on the park rangers part they should of been aware of what was legal and what wasn't.

A very nice place to pull over and enjoy the scenery before heading off to Mt. Rainier. There was even a family swimming in the boat loading ramp area - although I think they were crazy!

Depending on where you're coming from and perhaps travelling to; Alder Lake is a good State (quasi-state really) facility. It is a certainly off major travel routes, but we chose to take it in as a stop-over travelling East to see Yakima, WA.On this note; a word of warning... if you are travelling East or West between Olympia and Yakima, you will likely be passing through Mt Rainier National Park and Snoqualmie National Forest -- neither are RV friendly passages -- a lot of narrow windy roadways with dramatic shifts in elevation. We pulled a 3,600 kg (8,000 lbs) RV, and we laboured through the entire passage. Having said that, some of the views were spectacular.Alder Lake is a dam reservoir in reality. As a result, low sloping grades around the perimeter is not something this lake offers. Access points are 'developed' and spread around the lake at various points. The lake is popular with power boaters (we didn't have a boat with us, so I don't know what the launch fees were) with a decent launch ramp and moderate truck/trailer parking (for fee).The campground is located across a small road from the primary day-use picnic and swimming area. From any campground in this location, it would be a 2-min walk. The campground layout is standard loops, with cut-away pads (asphalt paved), gravel area with steel ring fire-pits. At the time we were there, wood burning was permitted. Wood was available for purchase as well. The majority of the pads were not long and level -- bring levelling pads for your RV. While these campground sites are cut-away, there was still a lot of light available. There were a few walking trails to explore, and if you're adventurous, I believe there are full lake perimeter trails.The swimming area was a real positive for the hot days. A very large grassy area for picnics and sports is affronted by a man-made beach to the swimming area. Swimming was cool and refreshing. The kids had a great time trying to walk around the log swimming guard. The area also has a depth market, which the kids would climb, then do flips off of. We would spend good portions of the day at the beach. There are a few attractions to take in in the area - Northwest Trek Wildlife Park being one.The closest food/ice is available in Eatonville. If you are looking for broader options there is a Wal-Mart in Graham (45 mins from the campground).The campground is small, so ensure you have reservations. Driving all that way risking a no-vacancy would be frustrating. Once you're there, you and your kids will enjoy it.

My family just spent a weekend camping at the Alder Lake Campground. The park is situated on Alder Lake and has a great day use, swimming and picnicking area in addition to the campground. The facilities are well-kept and are owned and managed by Tacoma Power.

Alder Lake itself is beautiful as it is surrounded by forest and the slopes of Mt. Rainier. There are a decent amount of picnic sites with bbq grills that are first-come, first-served. The swimming beach is great for folks with younger kids, however my family chose to go off the beaten path and seek out a nicely shaded, more private entry to the lake for swimming. The water is cool and comfortable in August, but does tend to have a pretty muddy bottom...nothing a pair of slip-on sandals can't fix though. This lake is pretty popular with boaters and jet skiers, so swimmers need to be aware of the traffic and the wake the vehicles can cause. This is a great place to spend the day escaping from any occassional Puget Sound "heat wave."

It was rather dirty and unkept. But it was in the height of the summer and packed full of people. The water and beach were very murky and full of mud and frogs galore.

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Alder Lake Campground (run by Tacoma Power Parks), it was beautiful and peaceful... lots of space for our kids to play hide and seek, climb trees, and even build a teepee fort. We love staying in a campground where there is room to roam and we're not stacked in like sardines... this campground is perfect for families wanting to encourage their kids to "get back to nature" and stop playing video games! The staff was helpful and friendly, the bathrooms were also in good condition. Thanks for a wonderful stay!